Mrmatt3465

Hello experts here at Honda-Tech.

I've been floating around doing my usual. I read this forum all the time and the information is endless!

On topic now. I own a 1995 Civic EX Coupe. As pictured here


The previous owner rear ended a truck/suv lightly, but it still bent some stuff. I bought a new hood today to replace my dented one and have a more together-looking front on my car. I also replaced the front bumper cover. Now my issue is, because the owner rear ended someone, the top cross bar bowed down and back slightly. I have tried several spacers on the hood latch. Different proportions and different heights. I have tried adjusting the hood backwards as well as the latch upwards. I have tried removing the black stoppers to try and get more clearance. I have tried slamming it [I didn't like doing that one so much =P].

Front frame shot


Aerial Frame shot


How the frame bowed down


Latching shot


I went out and purchased a partial front clip from someone parting out a civic [thanks chris!]. It was chopped off and I took it home.




On to replacement. [This is where you guys come in] How do I go about tearing off my old frame bar and putting the new one on? The rail is spot welded. Do I drill out the spot welds then direct swap? Do I try and bend the old frame back up? If I decided to bend the frame back up, how do I go about doing it? Welding the new frame bar isn't a problem as my brother has a welder.

What do you guys suggest?

Mrmatt3465

Bump!

Unseen Racer

hmmm... im not so sure.
my neighbor actually did this on his old acura integra but it was a longer piece.
he use a rociprocating(spelled wrong) saw to remove it and he placed the new on on and just spot welded it. then once everything was good he welded the entire thing then grinded it down a little so it can look legit and it did.

iwanttokillgod

u have to drill all the spot welds out on the radiator support

HitF8

there is a lot of information all ready covered for replacing the radiator support. search it and i bet you come up with a lot of stuff. good luck!

efnoobie

you dont have to replace the rad support if your rad support is not bended badly..use some muscle get some bars and try to straightin it out..looks easy.. i did mine but mine was pushed back about and inch. i got oem jack and went great..

iwanttokillgod

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by efnoobie &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> you dont have to replace the rad support if your rad support is not bended badly..use some muscle get some bars and try to straightin it out..looks easy.. i did mine but mine was pushed back about and inch. i got oem jack and went great..</TD></TR></TABLE>

wtf is bended haha thought that was funny

Rock_Henry1234

one of the best things to do (in my opinion) would be to bend back what you've got. My boss and i do this all the time with front end damage. for your current situation i would use a 4x4 piece of wood and a jack. once you jack the wheels off the ground then you or a friend could stand in the engine bay and give a little jump. or you could do the swao thing.

Mrmatt3465

After doing a few simple searches that resulted in numerous questions and very few answers, I believe I will make a DIY for this. My brother is going to help my grind out the spot welds and weld the new one back on. Expect an anti56k post in the future. x]

I do have a question though.

When it comes to swapping the new hood on, Do I have to get new under-hood stickers to match my car?
Also on the Radiator support there is a sticker "HFC134a". Do I need to put that on the new support or do I grab a new one from Honda?

Davus

I'm not sure if those stickers are looked for by any emissions-controlled states. But, if so, new ones from a certain online Honda dealer are about $4 per sticker. It'd help with finishing touches of course.

Mrmatt3465

Good to know bro.

I'll have to look into that. Anyone else chime in on this?

ke98248

iTrader: (1)

First things first, you need to take this car to a professional auto body repair shop. The radiator support is bent, good job on buying another one. The front bumper support should be replaced for safety reasons, also.

The latch mechanism that attach to the new hood should be replaced. if you can't close the hood, the mechanisms are likely, bent or broken. Even if not, it's not worth it to have the hood fly up or off while driving if you can somehow get it to work..

Also, another reason to take it to an auto body repair shop is the front end if probably out of whack... Things won't always line up til you get your frame aligned and such. You need a spot welder, or you can spot weld with a regular MIG welder, but since you're asking, you obviously have VERY limited knowledge of auto body repair, so please, get this fixed at an auto body shop. Bending back damaged parts is one of the stupidest and dumbass ideas, don't do it. Why? The metal structure is already weakened, and by bending the structure back, you're weakening it further. The strength of the metal is compromised, and in the next accident you or another person gets into with the car, you could be seriously hurt.

There are inherent safety concerns by "attempting" at fixing the car yourself. Sure, there's a few things you can do yourself, but a lot of this needs to be done by a professional.

P.S. Kinda sketchy the previous owner never got this damaged fixed, I wonder why?

Mrmatt3465

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ke98248 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">First things first, you need to take this car to a professional auto body repair shop. The radiator support is bent, good job on buying another one. The front bumper support should be replaced for safety reasons, also.

The latch mechanism that attach to the new hood should be replaced. if you can't close the hood, the mechanisms are likely, bent or broken. Even if not, it's not worth it to have the hood fly up or off while driving if you can somehow get it to work..

Also, another reason to take it to an auto body repair shop is the front end if probably out of whack... Things won't always line up til you get your frame aligned and such. You need a spot welder, or you can spot weld with a regular MIG welder, but since you're asking, you obviously have VERY limited knowledge of auto body repair, so please, get this fixed at an auto body shop. Bending back damaged parts is one of the stupidest and dumbass ideas, don't do it. Why? The metal structure is already weakened, and by bending the structure back, you're weakening it further. The strength of the metal is compromised, and in the next accident you or another person gets into with the car, you could be seriously hurt.

There are inherent safety concerns by "attempting" at fixing the car yourself. Sure, there's a few things you can do yourself, but a lot of this needs to be done by a professional.

P.S. Kinda sketchy the previous owner never got this damaged fixed, I wonder why? </TD></TR></TABLE>

I understand a lot of what you say. I'm not a complete idiot though. I don't plan on doing things half ***. If you scroll up and look I purchased a new radiator support. I was more asking on how exactly I should go about taking the old bent one off and putting the new one on. I do have a new hood latch. The old one latched just fine, it just required spacers. As for the previous owner not repairing it, its wasnt a SERIOUS accident. He just bumped into a truck/suv. I picked this up from a used car lot. I'm pretty sure that is COMPLETELY irrelevant, but the frame isnt bent. Just the radiator support is. I don't roll around with a hood that does not close. I have seen horror stories from people who have. I do not drive my car unless I feel it is safe to. My brother owns a spot welder at his shop. He is going to help me replace it. I will be doing this professionally assisted. Rest assured things will be fine. Though I appreciate your concern.

ke98248

iTrader: (1)

if you read my whole post, you'd see I recognized the fact that you got another support. Fact is, it should be done professionally. Obviously you disagree, so I can't really help further. Good luck.